More and more letters in support of Fr. Roy Bourgeois and his prophetic stance with Roman Catholic Womenpriests

Dear Father Sivalon and Maryknoll Council:

This letter is to support Father Roy Bourgeois for his priestly decisions to attend the August 9 ordination of Janice Sevré-Duszynska as a Roman Catholic Womanpriest, to concelebrate the ordination Mass, and to give one of the homilies.

I am a Catholic theologian and a longtime friend of Janice, and I was also at the ordination. I was inspired by Father Bourgeois's presence and by his homily.

I have been to several ordinations of Roman Catholic Womenpriests. I am convinced of their validity and of the apostolic succession of the ordaining bishops. Thus, I believe that it is flying in the face of God's Will for Church officials to speak of disciplining any of the participants in these ordinations. I note that the Vatican's May 30 decree on women's ordination only threatened sanctions for those who "attempt" ordination. Since the ordaining bishops in Roman Catholic Womenpriests were ordained by male bishops in communion with the Vatican, the womenbishops were ordained in apostolic succession. Thus, the priestly ordinations they perform are not "attempts." They are the real thing.

Moreover, I think it is sacrilegious to speak of excommunicating anyone who participates in these ordinations. Excommunication can only come from God or from a person who makes a positive decision that they no longer wish to be a part of the Roman Catholic Church. None of the women and men ordained in Roman Catholic Womenpriests, or their supporters, have decided to leave the Church.

The Gospel for yesterday's Sunday Mass was about Jesus meeting the Canaanite woman. That is a Gospel that has always puzzled me because it presents Jesus as such a nasty, harsh person. If its purpose were just to present the power of faith or the extension of salvation to the Gentiles, as is the usual interpretation, Jesus could have done that without being so ungodly and distasteful - so unChristian. However, yesterday I finally had an insight into the meaning of that Gospel and why Jesus had to say what He did. It is a message to the hierarchy and others in the Church. "Do not treat women like dogs!" It is a message to the hierarchy - "Do not act like bouncers, trying to throw women out of the presence of Jesus," as the apostles did in this story of the Canaanite woman.

If women were only dogs, then it would be okay to deny them ordination. We say that dogs do not have human souls and so cannot have the life of God, in the form of sanctifying grace, within them. We say that dogs are not imago dei or alter Christus. We say that dogs were not redeemed by Christ (except in a cosmic sense). The hierarchy of the Church cannot have it both ways. If women are imago dei, alter Christus, have sanctifying grace, and are redeemed by Christ, then they cannot be treated like dogs. Yet, it is to treat women like dogs to deny women ordination. This is a justice issue. It is not simply a matter of Church discipline, like the ordination of married men.

Moreover, I think it is blasphemous to deny ordination to women. The rationale for this denial says that this is what God wants. That means that God wants women to be treated like dogs. It is also sinful to continue to pray for vocations while the hierarchy of the Church ignores the vocations that God has been giving to women and married men, preferring to dismantle the sacramental system of the Church by closing parishes rather than ordain women and married men. Perhaps this is the sin against the Holy Spirit, which Jesus condemned in the Gospels.

I hope that your meeting with Father Roy Bourgeois today is simply to learn from him about the August 9 ordination in Lexington and to hear from him personally on why he believes women should be ordained. I hope it is not to discipline him, either because a desire to discipline comes from the Maryknoll order itself, or because it is being sought by Cardinal Egan and the Vatican (as rumor has it).

I also hope that after your meeting with Father Bourgeois, you will even go a step further and commit Maryknoll to the cause of advancing women's ordination in the universal Church.

Thank you for your attention to this letter.

Sincerely,

Marjorie Reiley Maguire
Dear Father Sivalon and Council Members,

The whole Church is aware and grateful for the long and wonderful contribution of Maryknoll and the truly heroic men and women who have dedicated their lives to spread the message of Jesus throughout the world. The Association for the Rights of Catholics in the Church--ARCC Board members have known many of them, worked with them, and shared their spirituality, joy, and dedication.

Surely no one has demonstrated this prophetic spirit and clear commitment to the message of Jesus than Father Roy Bourgeois. At baptism we followers of Jesus did not receive a pick and choose commitment to justice—“loves minimum,” according to Pope Pius XI. It was and is clear and unconditional. Roy Bourgeois is a shining Maryknoll light for the world to see, a courageous example of the spirit of Maryknoll’s clear dedication to justice and peace. He is one of your most visible spokespersons.

We urge you to support him as he lives and expresses what is known in the hearts of the people of God, namely, that violence against anyone, not only physical, but psychological or spiritual as well, is contrary to God’s will and a betrayal of our commitment to Jesus.

ARCC has supported the equality of women from its inception over 25 years ago and we support Father
Bourgeois in his courageous stance. We urge you to be true to the Maryknoll charism of Justice and also strongly sustain Roy Bourgeois.

Sincerely,

Leonard Swidler, Ph.D., S.T.L., LL.D., LL.D.
Professor of Catholic Thought and Interreligious Dialogue
Co-Founder and Editor, Journal of Ecumenical Studies
Co-Founder and President, Association for the Rights of Catholics in the Church

Dear Father Sivalon (Superior General), and Council Members,
We, two theologians from Germany, want to express our concern and solidarity for Fr. Roy Bourgeois, who supported publicly women's ordination during an ordination ceremony in Lexington/USA.
We have been struggling for women's ordination already since Vatican Council (1962-1065). In 1963 we submitted a petition to the Vatican Council asking for full equality of women in our church.
Moreover, I (Ida Raming) have written my doctoral thesis on the exclusion of women from priesthood (published in 1973 in Germany, 1976 in USA by Scarecrow Press; second edition: The priestly Office of Women. God's Gift to a Renewed Church (Scarecrow 2004).
We know all to well that the exclusion of women from priesthood is based on a longlasting discrimination. Therefore we cannot give up our aim: full equality of women in our church, as the letter to the Galatians says: "Through faith and by baptism in the name of Christ ... there is no longer Jew and Greek, slave and free, male and female.." (cf. Gal 3:25-28).
We appreciate very much that Fr. Roy Bourgeois has given a prophetic homily during the ordination ceremony. We welcome his bold words based also on the text Gal 3.
We stand in solidariy with him and we do wish that more male priests stand up for full equality of women in our church.
My history (Dr. Iris Müller) also has been severely burdened by the inferior position of women in the church: As a protestant theologian I converted to the Catholic Church already in 1958. Although I loved this church, f.i. because of its more "whole" liturgy , I suffered very much from the discrimination of women in this church. Whereas protestant women theologians can become pastors catholic women are excluded from this important ministry. So I lost this perspective after my conversion - until today!
As you know very well protestant male pastors who convert to the Catholic Church can become priests even if they are married and have children!
So you see the injustice if you compare these two ways and situations!
We cannot keep silent in view of this severe discrimination. Our protest is based on the words of the Bible: "We must obey God more than men..." (Acts 5:29).
Blessings and Peace to you and your community,
Ida Raming, Dr. theol., Iris Müller, Dr. theol.

Dear Maryknoll Community,
Peace be with you.
Father Roy participated in my ordination last Saturday. His action was prophetic in much the same way that he demonstrates against violence at Ft. Benning to close the SOA / WHINSEC. The only difference is that the Vatican has not yet made that connection...so this is a prophetic opportunity for you to lead the Vatican and the people of God forward to bring about the Kindom of which Jesus spoke. That Kindom is very palpable in Roy's presence. In Liz McCallister's presence. John Dear's. Joan Chittister's. Frank Cordaro's. Kathy Kelly's. Louis Vitale's. Kathy Boylan's. Jerry Zawada's....

One of my mentors on my journey to the priesthood was Dominican Sister Marge Tuite. I met her in 1981 at a Woman Church Convergence gathering in Chicago and later at Alverno College in Milwaukee. She was able to put into words what I believe Jesus understood: "Make the connections," she said, "between sexism, racism, militarism, capitalism, nationalism and colonialism." It has taken years for her words to permeate my being and for me to understand them.

They are the ways in which we disempower others while Jesus calls us to empower each other. They are the ways in which we enslave people while Jesus calls us to freedom and liberation. They are the ways to exploit other human beings while Jesus calls us to right relationships of a radical egalitarian nature, treating each one as our neighbor. In other words, we are all to be on an equal playing field, according to the teachings of Jesus who we follow.

When our Church does not include feminine images of God, women and our world community suffer. When our Church does not include women on the altar imaging the sacred, women and our world community suffer. When our Church does not allow women's priestly voices to interpret the Gospels from our lived experiences, women and our world community suffer.

There is a direct relationship, dear Maryknoll community, between the violence that continues to wreak chaos and havoc in our world -- and the domination/subordination paradigm imprinted upon our collective and personal consciousness -- that men control women and that women's sufferings remain invisible. If men can still control women, i.e., no inclusive images of God, no women at the altar imaging the Imago Dei, no women's voices to take stock of the Gospels and relate them to our womanly living and dying -- then men can also enslave others, exploit others, make war over others, bully others, abuse others...and Jesus' words go by the wayside.

My hope is that you've already made the connections -- as the Maryknolls are known worldwide for their outspoken protection of the marginalized and oppressed -- and you'll move with the Spirit to free our Church from the brick and mortar that weigh it down... Understand why Roy came to my ordination and where he's at: a place of Light, Transparency, and Hope in Christ that transforms us at every turn. Be gentle with Roy, as he is a man of God...Hear the Spirit (not Church law) when he comes before you.

Your sister in faith,
Janice Sevre-Duszynska

Dear Maryknoll community,
I understand from http://ncronline3.org/drupal/?q=node/1616 that as a result of his participation in the priestly ordination of my wife, Janice Sevre-Duszynska, Fr. Roy Bourgeois has been summoned "to come home and explain to us what happened.” What a quaint and euphemistic way of expressing the apparent situation. It's even smoother than polite declarations in London newspapers that suspects undergoing rigorous interrogation are "helping the authorities with their investigation." I doubt that police in Montgomery, Alabama were as civil as your superior general and the British press when they placed Rosa Parks under arrest for violating a patently unjust law in 1955.

Am I rushing to judgment in assuming that the leadership at Maryknoll will punish Fr. Bourgeois for acknowledging that the Holy Spirit is utterly devoid of human bigotry regarding gender, race, age, sexual orientation, eye color, blood type and other characteristics of our mortal bodies? Perhaps, but recent statements from the Vatican on women's ordination, together with the apparent failure of the Maryknolls to congratulate Fr. Bourgeois immediately for his courage to act as a true Christian in Lexington on August 9th give me little hope that anyone in your community (except Fr. Bourgeois) places conscience above comfort, coziness and cash flow.

Nevertheless, if you choose to throw Fr. Bourgeois to the wolves, know that you will be forgiven. After all, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do" was said in reference to people who treated someone with far less compassion than you are likely to extend to your Maryknoll brother. In the next life, you'll probably get off without a scratch, or maybe with just a slap on the wrist. The only real punishment will come here on earth, from yourself -- and those around you -- who will eventually understand that with your unmitigated collaboration, authorities in the Roman Catholic Church have grievously harmed a brother for doing what is morally right, regardless of the cost to himself.

I hope that I am sorely mistaken about your intentions, and Rome's, when Fr. Bourgeois returns home. Also, I hope that in speaking with him you will keep the story and 1955 booking image of Rosa Parks (below) in mind. I clipped it from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosa_parks . But most of all, I hope that you will greet Fr. Bourgeois -- and vicariously, all those who love and respect him -- with open hearts, long overdue congratulations for his support of women's ordination, and a symbolic gift. May I respectfully suggest a contribution to SOA Watch from every member of the Maryknoll community in the amount of $14, this
comprising the $10 fine plus $4 court costs that Rosa Parks was required to pay for her conviction on charges of disorderly conduct and violation of a local ordinance while on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama on December 1, 1955.

May I also request that you reflect upon the terrible consequences of long-standing support by an enormous number of "Christians" for the enslavement of dark-skinned people of African ancestry. This horrific injustice, like the training of terrorists by the U.S. government in the SOA/WHINSEC and the unequal treatment and subordination of women that is relentlessly imposed by the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church, is among the many unconscionable acts that your Maryknoll brother, Roy Bourgeois, has found the courage to oppose.

The excerpts I've included below deal with the end of an institutionalized injustice against black people in America. Please stand with Fr. Bourgeois in rejecting the institutionalized subordination of women.

Yours sincerely,

Robert A. Pohowsky
Nicholasville, KY


http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1058/is_n21_v112/ai_17332136
SBC renounces racist past - Southern Baptist Convention
Christian Century, July 5, 1995
The resolution declared that messengers, as SBC delegates are called, "unwaveringly denounce racism, in all its forms, as deplorable sin" and "lament and repudiate historic acts of evil such as slavery from which we continue to reap a bitter harvest." It offered an apology to all African-Americans for "condoning and/or perpetuating individual and systemic racism in our lifetime" and repentance for "racism of which we have been guilty, whether consciously or unconsciously."


http://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/17/opinion/17KRIS.html?ex=1091123060&ei=1&en=1b1984434af9d57b
Many American Christians once read the Bible to mean thatAfrican-Americans were cursed as descendants of Noah's sonHam, and were intended by God to be enslaved. In the 19thcentury, millions of Americans sincerely accepted thisBiblical justification for slavery as God's word - butsurely it would have been wrong to defer to such racistnonsense simply because speaking out could have beenperceived as denigrating some people's religious faith.


http://www.nytimes.com/2003/12/14/books/review/14WOODLT.html?ex=1072366633&ei=1&en=790bd4d846ae6623
If anything can take founders like Washington and Jeffersonout of our present and place them back into the particularcontext of their time, it is this fact that they wereslaveholders. Slavery is virtually inconceivable to us. Wecan scarcely imagine one person owning another for life.Seeing Washington and Jefferson as slaveholders, men whobought, sold and flogged slaves, has to change ourconception of them. They don't belong to us today; theybelong to the 18th century, to that coarse and brutal worldthat is so remote from our own.

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/26/opinion/26DOWD.html?ex=1078804374&ei=1&en=50d607ba85bdf831
The pols [politicians] keep arguing that institutions can't be changedwhen, in fact, they change all the time. Haven't they everheard of the institution of slavery?